CLIMATE AND WEATHER IN GREAT BRITAIN 4 страница

canvas ['kaenvas] холст, полотно

to introduce [,intre'dju:s] вводить, представлять,

вносить

figure ['figa] фигура

to bring out выявлять, обнаруживать

loneliness ['iaunlinisj одиночество

remote [ri'maut] отдаленный

indifferent [in'difrant] безразличный, равнодушный,

холодный

to influence ['influans] влиять

to make an impression [im'prejn] on производить

впечатление на

unforgettable [yvnfa'getabl] незабываемый

to admire [ad'maia] восхищаться

emotional [i'maufanl] эмоциональный, волнующий

lyrical [lirikl] лирический

closing ['klauzig] years последние годы (жизни)

journey f'd33:ni] поездка, путешествие

abroad [a'bro:d] за границей, за границу

although [э:1'Ээи] хотя

to devote [dhreut] to посвящать (кому-либо,

чему-либо)

to depict [di'pikt] изображать, рисовать

gratitude ['grsetitju:d] благодарность

 

Questions

1. What is Levitan famous for?

2. Levitan is a very individual sort of painter. Can you prove it?

3. What traditions did Levitan continue and develop?

4. What place did Levitan choose for his life and painting?

5. Did the Volga influence his art?

6. How old was Levitan when he died?

7. Why do so many people like his pictures?

8. Who is your favourite Russian painter?

 

 

MOZART

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart is one of the greatest composers ever born. Like Shakespeare, he stands at the summit of human achievement. In every form, from serenade to fugue, from piano concerto and symphony to the heights of grand opera, his music amazes, enchants and invades the memory.

Thousands of books have been written about Mozart. Few lives have ever been so well documented as his, and yet he is one of the most mysterious figures in the world.

Mozart was born in 1756 in Salzburg, Austria.

He began playing the piano at 4, and when he was 5 years old, he already composed serious music. His father took him on tours of Western Europe and Italy and the boy was always a success.

Then the prodigy ripened into genius. The genius conquered Vienna and the world. Mozart's fame was great. He met all the great figures of his time, from Haydn to Goethe, from George III to the luckless Marie Antoinette. But then he suddenly fell from favour. The Vienna aristocracy grew tired of him. He lost pupils and contracts, had to move from his comfortable house in the centre to a modest flat in the suburbs. The genius was forgotten.

Mozart died in 1791, when he was only 35 years old. There's a legend that Mozart was poisoned by his rival composer Antonio Salieri. There's no truth in this legend, though it inspired many great poets, writers and composers. But it has been proved that in the last months of his life Mozart really believed that he was pursued by a spirit, "the grey messenger", who appeared and ordered him to write a requiem. In a state of depression Mozart imagined that he was to write the requiem for himself.

Not long ago a 150-volume edition of Mozart's works was published.

His works include 41 symphonies, nearly 30 piano concertos, 19 operas, a vast quantity of orchestral and other instrumental music, and volumes of church music (he wrote it mostly for financial reasons). His most famous operas are Don Giovanni, The Magic Flute and The Marriage of Figaro.

 

Names

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart ['wulfgaerj 8ema,deias Haydn ['haidn] Гайдн (знаменитый австрийский

'meutsa:t] Вольфганг Амадей Моцарт композитор)

Salzburg ['saeltsbaig] Зальцбург Goethe ['дз:1э] Гете (знаменитый немецкий поэт,

Austria ['ostria] Австрия автор "Фауста")

Vienna [vi'ena] Вена Salieri |>aeli'eri] Сальери

George III [,d3o:d3 da '03:d] Георг III (король ])on Giovanni [,don d3au'va:ni] Дон-Жуан

Великобритании и Ирландии с 1738 по 1820 г.; Пе м .. рШе ^ ,flu.t] Волшебная

считался безумным) .

Marie Antoinette [,maeri sentwa'net] Мария

Антуанетта (королева Франции, жена The Marriage of Figaro [,maerid3 av 'figarau]

Людовика XVI; была гильотинирована во Свадьба Фигаро

время Великой Французской революции)

 

Vocabulary

composer [kam'pauza] композитор luckless [>klas] несчастливый, злополучный

summit ['SAmit] вершина to fall from favour ['feiva] впасть в немилость

achievement [a'tfkvmant] достижение aristocracy [,aeris'tokrasi] аристократия

serenade [,seri"neid] серенада modest ^^1} скромный

fugue [fiu:g] фуга in the suburbs ['злЬз:Ьг] на окраине города

piano concerto [kan'tf3:tau] фортепьянный концерт voiume [volju-m] том

symphony ['simfani] симфония е(,Шоп [Щп] юдание

grand opera [,grand 'эрага] большая опера ,е

(в противоп. комической опере или оперетте)

to amaze [a'meiz] изумлять, поражать to Polson К50*1! ° травлять, отравить

to enchant [in'tja:nt] околдовать, очаровывать r*va" t'raivl] соперник

to invade [in'veid] овладевать, охватывать to inspire [in'spaia] вдохновлять

(о чувствах и т.п.) to pursue [pa'sju:] преследовать

genius ['d3i:nias] гений spirit ['spirit] дух, призрак

mysterious [mfstiarias] таинственный, загадочный messenger ['mesindsa] посланник

to compose [kam'pauz] сочинять музыку to order ['o:da] приказывать

tour [tua] гастроли, выступления, поездка requiem ['rekwiem] реквием (хоровое произведение

prodigy ['prodid3i] вундеркинд, необыкновенно траурного характера)

одаренный человек vast quantity f'kwontiti] огромное количество

to ripen ['raipn] созревать, превращаться orchestral [o:'kestral] оркестровый

to conquer ['korjka] завоевывать instrumental [ jnstra'mentl] инструментальный

 

Questions

1. Why is Mozart so often compared with Shakespeare?

2. Is Mozart's life well documented?

3. When did he begin playing the piano?

4. How old was he when he began composing serious music?

5. Was Mozart's fame long?

6. How did he spend the last years of his short life?

7. Was Mozart poisoned?

8. Have you read Pushkin's Mozart and Salieri? Do you remember the end of this "little tragedy"?

9. Have you heard Rimsky-Korsakov's opera Mozart and Saliertf

10. What made Mozart write his famous requiem?

11. Mozart was an unusually prolific (плодовитый) composer, wasn't he? What kind of music did he write?

12. What do you think of Mozart's music?

 

 

MY FAVOURITE SINGER

My favourite singer is Michael Jackson. I like his songs very much because they are full of energy and very melodic. I also like the way he dances.

There were nine children in Michael's family. They lived in a small fourroom house. Today he lives in a house which has seventeen rooms downstairs and sixteen rooms upstaires. It stands in 2,700 acres of ground. Besides the house there are guest houses, a golf course, a swimming pool, tennis courts, stables, gardens, lakes, forests and a zoo.

A lot of strange stories are told about Jackson. It's difficult to decide whether they are true or not. Michael never gives interviews and is rarely seen in public, except on stage. Certainly his behaviour may seem eccentric. In public he often wears a face mask to protect himself from germs, he sleeps inside an oxygen capsule, which he believes will help him to live longer. But his manager says that Jackson isn't eccentric. He is just shy. Michael sang in public for the first time when he was five. Since that time he has always been in the public eye. And since that time he has been working like a grown-up.

There were times when he came home from school and he only had time to put his books and get ready for the studio. He often sang until late at night, even if it was past his bedtime. There was a park across the street from the studio, and Michael looked at the kids playing games. And he just stared at them in wonder — he couldn't imagine such freedom, such a carefree life.

Now he says about himself that in the crowd he is afraid, on stage he is safe. Off stage he feels happiest with animals and children. He is well-known for his childish tastes. It's not a secret that his favourite hero is Peter Pan.

Michael has been called "the child who never grew up", but I think he is a grown-up who was never allowed to be a child.

Whether he is crazy, childish, eccentric or just shy, he is no fool. He has created a brilliantly successful image, he makes a lot of money and spends it on the things he wants. Who wouldn't like to do the same?

 

Names

Michael Jackson [,maikl 'c^seksn] Майкл Джексон

Peter Pan Питер Пэн (герой книг английского писателя Джеймса Барри, мальчик, который не рос)

 

Vocabulary

energy [-enad3i] энергия

melodic [mi'bdik] мелодичный

the way he dances как он танцует

acre ['eika] акр

golf course ['golf ,ko:s] поле для гольфа

stable ['steibl] конюшня

interview [Intavju:] интервью

rarely [Yeali] редко

behaviour [bi'heivje] поведение

eccentric [ak'sentrik] эксцентричный

mask [ma:sk] маска

to protect [pra'tekt] защищать

germ [d33:m] бактерия

oxygene capsule ['oksidgan 'kaepsju:!]

кислородная капсула

shy [Jai] застенчивый

in the public eye на виду

grown-up [,дгэип'лр] взрослый

studio ['stu:(stju:)diau] студия

it was past his bedtime ему давно было пора

ложиться спать

to stare ['stea] in wonder ['vwvnda] смотреть в

изумлении

to imagine [irnsedsin] представлять себе

carefree ['keafri:] беззаботный

crowd [kraud ] толпа

on stage he is safe на сцене он чувствует себя

в безопасности

childish ['tjaildif] детский

to allow [a'lau] разрешать, позволять

crazy f'kreizi] сумасшедший

 

Questions

1. What role does music play in your life?

2. What kind of music do you like?

3. How often do you listen to music?

4. Do you like Michael Jackson's songs?

5. Do you think that his behaviour is eccentric?

6. Why is Michael Jackson often compared to Peter Pan?

7. Do you think his childhood was happy?

8. When does Michael feel happiest?

9. Are all the stories printed about Michael Jackson true?

10. Do you like the way Michael dances?

 

 

THE BIRTH OF THE "SEVENTH ART"

Can you imagine life without films or television, cinema's little sister?

Today we can watch television 24 hours a day, we can go to the cinema or put a cassette into our video when we want. We can even make video films ourselves.

But imagine the surprise and the shock that people felt when they saw the first films in 1895! There was no sound, no colour and the films were very short: they lasted from 60 to 90 seconds! Besides, they did not tell a story.

They were glimpses of real life: a military parade, a running horse, a boxing match, the ocean ... One of the first films showed a train coming towards the camera. The audience panicked and ran away! The frightened people were sure that the train was coming into the theatre.

The early films were shown in music halls, theatres, cafes and even shops. Travelling projectionists brought the films to smaller cities and country towns.

The cinema was the perfect popular entertainment. It was not expensive and, at first, the audience consisted mainly of workers. The rich and intellectual classes ignored it. They didn't think it was art.

Gradually films became longer and started to tell stories. Edwin Porter was one of the first directors who made such a film in 1903. It was The Great Train Robbery, the first Western in the history of the cinema. This 11-minute film became a sensational hit.

As soon as the films learned to tell stories, they began to film the classics.

Silent films had orchestras or pianists. Later, printed titles were invented.

Film-makers soon learned how to use special effects. The first known special effect was created in 1895 by Alfred Clark in The Execution of Mary, Queen of Scots. It was a simple trick: the camera was stopped and the actress replaced with a doll.

In 1911 the first studio was opened in Hollywood, Los Angeles. Filmmakers soon realised that the place was perfect for shooting nearly any film — it had mountains, desert and ocean. Soon nearly all important American studios were in Hollywood. The next thirty years became Hollywood's greatest years.

The era of the talking film began in 1927 with the enormous success of Warner Brothers' The Jazz Singer. The film mostly told its story with titles, but it had three songs and a short dialogue. There were long queues in front of the Warner Theatre in New York... The silent film was dead within a year.

The first colour films were made in the 1930s. The introduction of colour was less revolutionary than the introduction of sound. The silent film soon disappeared, but the black-and-white films are made even today.

The most important aspect of the cinema was that, for the price of a ticket, people could dream for a few hours. The little boy who went to a Saturday matinee in Manchester or Marseilles could imagine he was a courageous cowboy. The mother in Birmingham or Berlin could imagine she was Scarlett O'Hara in the arms of Rhett Butler.

Today, no one disputes cinema's place as the "seventh art". It has provided as many great artists as literature, the theatre, and any of the other arts.

 

Names

Edwin Porter [,edwin 'po:ta] Эдвин Портер

The Great Train Robbery frobari]

Большое ограбление поезда

Alfred Clark Lselfrad 'kla:k] Альфред Кларк

The Execution [,eksi'kju:fn] of Mary, Queen of Scots

Казнь Марии, королевы шотландской

Hollywood ['holiwud] Голливуд

Los Angeles [los 'ззпйзэШг] Лос-Анджелес

Warner Brothers ['wo:na ,Ьглдэг] Уорнер Бразерз

(известная американская кинокомпания)

The Jazz [d3sez] Singer Джазовый певец

Manchester ['maentfista] Манчестер

Marseilles [marsei] Марсель

Birmingham [temirjem] Бермингем

Berlin [bai'lin] Берлин

Scarlett O'Hara Lska:lit au'ha:ra] Скарлет О'Хара

(героиня книги и фильма «Унесенные ветром»)

Rhett Butler [,ret 'ЬлИэ] Рет Батлер (герой книги и

фильма «Унесенные ветром»)

 

Vocabulalry

cassette [ka'set] кассета

video ['vidiau] видеомагнитофон

glimpse [glimps] зд. картинка (реальной жизни)

military parade [jnilitari pa'reid] военный

парад

surprise [sa'praiz] удивление

towards [to:dz ] по направлению к

audience ['o:dians] публика, зрители

to panick ['paenik] впадать в панику

projectionist [pra'd3ekfanist] киномеханик

entertainment [,enta'teinment] зрелище,

развлечение

expensive [iks'pensiv] дорогой, дорогостоящий

intellectual [jnta'lektjual] интеллектуальный

to ignore [ig'no:] не замечать, игнорировать

gradually ['graedjuali] постепенно

director [di'rekta] режиссер

Western f'westan] вестерн

to be a sensational [sen'seifanal] hit иметь

сенсационный успех

classic ['klaesik] классика, классическое произведение

silent ['salient] film немой фильм

orchestra ['o:kastra] оркестр

title ['tartl] титр

film-maker ['film/neika] создатель фильма, режиссер

special effect [,spejal i'fekt] спецэффект

trick [trik] трюк

to replace [ri'pleis] заменять

studio ['stu:(stju:)diau] студия

to shoot [fu:t] (shot) снимать (фильм)

desert ['dezat] пустыня

era [1эгэ] эра, эпоха

enormous [i'no:mas] огромный

queue [kju:] очередь

introduction [jntra'dAkJn] введение, внедрение

revolutionary [,reva'lu:Janari] революционный

price [prais] цена

matinee ['maetinei] фр. дневной спектакль to dispute [dis'pju:t] ставить под сомнение,

или сеанс (в кино) оспаривать; сомневаться

courageous [ka'reidsas] смелый, храбрый to provide [pravaid] давать, предоставлять

cowboy ['kauboi] ковбой

 

Questions

1. In 1895 the French Lumiere [lu'miea] brothers showed their first films in public. Were they different from modern films?

2. Where were the early films shown?

3. Why did the rich and intellectual classes ignore the cinema?

4. Why did The Great Train Robbery become a sensational hit?

5. When was the first special effect created?

6. When did the first studio open in Hollywood?

7. Why did film-makers like Hollywood?

8. Have you ever seen a silent film? Did you like it?

9. When did the era of the talking film begin?

10. Was the introduction of colour as revolutionary as the introduction of sound?

11. Do you agree that the cinema is "the seventh art"? Why?

12. Do you often go to the cinema?

13. What films do you like to see?

14. Who are your favourite actors?

15. Who are your favourite film directors?

 

 

DAVID DUCHOVNY

David Duchovny was born in New York City on the 7th of August, 1960.

His father is a writer and his mother is a housewife. Before David was bom his parents had been English teachers. When his parents divorced, David was raised by his mother, along with his sister Laurie and his brother Daniel.

David went to a prestigious private school in Manhattan. "He was a very bright kid with a brilliant sense of humour," his father remembers. "At school he was always top of the class."

After school he entered Princeton University. Then he studied English Literature at Yale University and worked as a teaching assistant.

David was working at his PhD thesis at Yale when one of his friends suggested that he should try acting classes.

Duchovny's PhD thesis, Magic and Technology in Contemporary Fiction and Poetry was never finished. He moved to Hollywood.

His mother was angry when he had given up studying. Even now, when she speaks to him on the phone, she always asks him: "When are you going to finish your thesis?" He laughs and says: "Later, later."

David's first year in Hollywood was very hard. He was unemployed and could hardly make both ends meet. Luckily, he was invited to play in a commercial and later in a feature film. "Acting gave me a sense of team and I liked this very much," David says.

Very soon Duchovny appeared in such feature films as Chaplin, Beethoven and California.

His work in the movies attracted the attention of Chris Carter, the famous creator of The X-Files. A TV series weren't in Duchovny's plans but he was impressed by the script for The X-Files. So he became agent Fox Mulder.

David is very surprised not only by the success of The X-Files but by his own personal popularity.

Actors who have worked with him describe him as modest, professional and hard-working.

David is fond of sports. He played basketball and baseball at school and university. He keeps in shape with jogging and yoga exercises.

He writes poetry, but, as he says, he does not read it in public any more.

 

Names

David Duchovny [,deivid du'kovni] Дейвид Духовный Laurie ['b:ri] Лори

Daniel ['daenjsl] Даниил

Manhattan [maen'haetn] Манхеттен (центральный

район Нью-Йорка)

Princeton University [prinstan juni'vaisiti]

Принстонский университет (один из старейших

университетов США)

Yale University [jell junhraisiti] Йельский

университет (один из старейших и и наиболее

престижных университетов США)

Hollywood ['holiwud] Голливуд

Chaplin ['tjaeplin] Чаплин

Beethoven ['beithauvn] Бетховен

California [,kaeli'fo:nia] Калифорния

Chris Carter [,kris 'ka:ta] Крис Картер

The X-Files [9i 'eks ,failz] Секретные материалы

Fox Mulder. Lfoks 'nrv\lda] Фокс Малдер

 

Vocabulary

to divorce [di'vois] разводиться

to raise ['reiz] растить, воспитывать

prestigious [pre'stid3as] престижный

private ['praivit] school амер. частная школа

teaching assistant [a'sistant] ассистент кафедры

(низшая преподавательская должность в

американских университетах)

PhD [,pi: eitj 'di:] (сокр. от Doctor of Philosophy)

доктор философии

thesis ['Gi:sis] (pi. theses ['9i:si:z]) диссертация

acting classes уроки актерского мастерства

magic ['msed3ik] магия

technology [tek'nolad3i] техника, технология

contemporary [kan'temparari] современный

fiction ['fikjn] художественная литература

unemployed [yuiim'ploid] безработный

could hardly make both ends meet едва сводил

концы с концами

commercial [ka'rrraijal] телереклама

feature ['fl:tja] film художественный фильм

to attract [a'traekt] attention привлечь внимание

series ['siari:z] сериал

creator [kri'eita] создатель

to impress [im'pres] произвести впечатление

script [skript] сценарий

agent feid3ant] агент

popularity Lpopju'laeriti] популярность

modest ['modist] скромный

hard-working [,ha:d'w3:kig] трудолюбивый

to keep in shape [Jeip] держаться в форме

jogging ['d3ogiQ] "джогинг", бег трусцой

yoga ['jauga] йога

 

Questions

1. Do you like David Duchovny?

2. Do you think he is a talented actor?

3. Is he handsome?

4. What do other actors say about him?

5. Was David a good student?

6. Where did he study?

7. What was his first job?

8. Do you think he'll finish his PhD thesis?

9. Does David like his new profession?

10. Have you seen The X-Filesl

11. Do you like Fox Mulder?

12. Fox Mulder believes in UFOs. Do you?

13. What is David Duchovny' s hobby?

14. What does he do to keep in shape?

 

Science and Scientists

 

ALBERT EINSTEIN

Albert Einstein is known all over the world as a brilliant theoretical physicist and the founder of the theory of relativity. He is perhaps the greatest scientist of the 20th century. Some of his ideas made possible the atomic bomb, as well as television and other inventions.

He was born in 1879 in a small German town. The Einstein family soon moved to Munich, where Albert went to school. Neither his parents, nor his school teachers thought much of his mental abilities. His uncle often joked: "Not everybody is born to become a professor."

In 1895 Albert failed the entrance examination to a technical college in Zurich. A year later, however, he managed to pass the exam and entered the college.

After graduating from the college, Einstein started to work at the Swiss Patent Office in Bern. In 1905 he wrote a short article in a science magazine.

This was his 'Special Theory of Relativity', which gave the world the most famous equation relating mass and energy (E = me2), the basis of atomic energy.

Later, he became a professor in several European universities and in 1914 moved to Berlin as a member of the Prussian Academy of Sciences. After ten years of hard work he created his 'General Theory of Relativity'.

In 1921 Einstein received the Nobel Prize for Physics.

A Jew, and a pacifist, he was attacked by the Nazis, and when Hitler came to power in 1933 he decided to settle in the United States.

In 1939 Albert Einstein wrote a letter to President Roosevelt, at the request of several prominent physicists, outlining the military potential of nuclear energy and the dangers of a Nazi lead in this field. His letter greatly influenced the decision to build an atomic bomb, though he took no part in the Manhattan Project. After the war he spoke out passionately against nuclear weapons and repression.

Einstein died in 1955. The artificial element einsteinium has been named in his honour.

 

Names

Albert Einstein [,aelbat 'ainstain]

Munich ['mju:nik] Мюнхен

Zurich ['zuarik] Цюрих

Bern [Ьз:п] Берн

Berlin [,Ьз:'Нп] Берлин

the Prussian Academy of Sciences ['prAjn a.ksedami

av 'saiansiz] Прусская академия наук

Hitler ['hitla] Гитлер

Nobel Prize [nau,bel 'praiz] Нобелевская премия

Roosevelt ['rauzavelt] Рузвельт (президент США

с 1933 по 1945г.)

Manhattan Project [maen,haetn 'prod3ekt]

Манхеттенский проект (кодовое название работы

по созданию атомной бомбы в США в период

второй мировой войны)

 

Vocabulary

theoretical physicist [Gia'retikal 'fizisist]

физик-теоретик

theory of relativity ['Giari av /ela'tiviti] теория

относительности

atomic bomb [a,tomik 'bom] атомная бомба

invention [in'venjn] изобретение

mental abilities [.mentl a'bilitiz] умственные

способности

to fail [fell] examinations провалиться на

экзаменах

patent ['peitant] office патентное бюро

equation [i'kweijn] уравнение

to relate [ri'leit] связывать, устанавливать

отношение

mass [maes] масса

energy ['enad3i] энергия

basis ['beisis] основа, основание

Jew [d3u:] еврей

pacifist ['paesifist] пацифист

nazi ['na:tsi] нацист

to come to power ['paua] прийти к власти

to settle ['sell] поселиться

at the request [ri'kwest] по просьбе

prominent ['prominent] видный, выдающийся

to outline ['autlainj обрисовать, наметить в общих чертах

military potential [,militari pa'tenjalj военный

потенциал

nuclear ['nju:kliaj ядерный

lead [li:d] ведущее, первое место

to influence [Influans] оказывать влияние

to speak out against выступать против

passionately ['paejnitli] страстно

nuclear weapons [,nju:klia 'wepanz] ядерное оружие

repression [ri'prejn] репрессия

artificial [,a:ti'fijl] искусственный

element ['elimant] элемент

einsteinium [ain'stainiam] эйнштейний

in smb's honour Г'опэ] в чью-либо честь

 

Questions

1. Why is Einstein generally thought of as being the greatest scientist of the 20th century?

2. When and where was he bom?

3. What did his parents and relatives think of his mental abilities?

4. Did he manage to pass his entrance exams at once?

5. Where did Einstein work after graduating from the college?

6. When did he create his 'Special Theory of Relativity'? Why is it considered to be one of the greatest discoveries ever made?

7. How long did it take him to form his 'General Theory of Relativity'?

8. Why did Einstein leave Germany?

9. Why did he write a letter to President Roosevelt? What was it about?

10. Did Einstein take part in the Manhattan Project?

11. What do you know about nuclear weapons? Why are they dangerous?

12. What other outstanding physicists do you know?

 

 

ANDREI SAKHAROV

Andrei Dmitrievich Sakharov, an outstanding scientist and public figure, was born on the 21st of May, 1921, into the family of teachers. He graduated from Moscow University in 1942. In 1947 he defended his thesis for the degree of Candidate of Science. In 1953 he defended his Doctorate thesis and was elected member of the Academy of Sciences.

When he was a graduate student Sakharov began to work on the Soviet nuclear weapons programme and soon he suggested a totally new idea for a hydrogen bomb design. But he was getting more and more worried about the consequences of his work. He understood better than anybody else what nuclear weapons meant and he thought about his own responsibility and about the responsibility of the states which possessed such weapons.

In 1968 he wrote an article attacking Soviet political system. He wrote that people needed a democratic society, free of dogmatism.

Sakharov is often called the father of the Soviet hydrogen bomb, but he became more known as a champion for human rights and freedom. For this work the Nobel Committee awarded him the Peace Prize in 1975. The Committee called him "the conscience of mankind". The Soviet authorities, however, did not allow him to go to Norway to receive the award.